Nose Hill Park is a natural park in the northwest quadrant of Calgary, Alberta which covers over . It is a municipal park, unlike Fish Creek, which is a provincial park. It was created in 1980.

Wildlife

thumb|left|150px|White-tailed deer are often observed within [[Aspen|aspen groves and coulees in Nose Hill Park.]]The park is large enough to sustain large mammals like white-tailed deer and coyote as well as porcupine, northern pocket gophers, and Richardson's ground squirrels. Northern harriers and Swainson's hawks feed on smaller species such as mice and voles. In 1984 in Hartel Holdings vs the City of Calgary, the Supreme Court of Canada gave the City the "right to purchase land on Nose Hill at its own pace."

In the 1980s Nose Hill Park was officially designated a protected area by the city. Business at the brothels flourished until World War I, when competing downtown facilities that operated near the city's saloons and new army barracks diverted attention away from the less accessible Nose Hill and Nose Creek district.

In the fall of 1896, a young Blackfoot man, Running Weasel, died south of the Bow River. His final request provides eloquent testimony to Nose Hill's enduring role as a sentinel presiding over the passage of time. At his death, Running Weasel asked that he be " ... put where he could see the great city [of Calgary] grow beneath his feet." His well-known friend Deerfoot (Blackfoot) placed his coffin beside Nose Creek.

As Calgary developed and grew, it began encroaching on the hill. Developers discussed constructing a neighborhood along the hill as early as the late 1940s. Some maps began featuring roads as far northwest as 24th Street and 48 Avenue, though none of these roads were ever constructed north of John Laurie Boulevard or west of 14th Street.

Cattle grazing continued on the hill unabated until 1969. Vehicle traffic was tolerated on parts of the hill until 1971. People picnicking or just sightseeing from their cars were common sights in summer months. More than 35 years later, remnants of the damage the cars created on the narrow paths can still be seen immediately west of the Calgary Winter Club Parking lot.

Prior to the 15th Annual Conference of the Blackfoot Confederacy hosted by the Kainai in Tsuu T’ina, in September, 2015, a stone marker was created adjacent to an older site of a stone cairn circle.

Size and location

  • from North to South
  • from East to West
  • altitude

It is bordered on the South by John Laurie Blvd. N.W., to the West by Shaganappi Tr. N.W., on the East by 14 St. N.W., and on the North by the community of MacEwan Glen.

The park had more than of informal trails. The city proposed a rehabilitation plan which would provide of maintained trails and pathways, of which are dirt and gravel and are asphalt.

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Image:Nose Hill +downtown.JPG|Downtown Calgary seen from Nose Hill

Image:Nose_Hill_Park.JPG|Nose Hill's relatively flat summit

Image:Nose-hill-view2.jpg|View of Nose Hill Park summit looking northwest

Image:Nose-hill-view3.jpg|View from Nose Hill Park looking north

Image:Nose_Hill,_NW_Calgary.jpg|View from Nose Hill Park overlooking downtown, and facing Southeast in Spring, 2012

Image:V - VIII - MMXIII.jpg|View of Calgary's skyline from the NW & facing SE in Summer, 2013

</gallery>

See also

  • List of attractions and landmarks in Calgary
  • List of protected areas of Alberta
  • List of parks in Calgary

References

  • Friends of Nose Hill Society